CANTON -- St. Lawrence University Emeritus Professor of Chemistry Paul Connett is the co-author of the book The Case Against Fluoride: How Hazardous Waste Ended Up in Our Drinking Water and the Bad Science and Powerful Politics That Keep It There, recently published by Chelsea Green Publishing.

Written with James Beck and H. Spedding Micklem, the book "takes a new look at the science behind water fluoridation and argues that just because the dental and medical establishments endorse a public health measure doesn't mean it's safe," according to publishers. "At once painstakingly documented and also highly readable, The Case Against Fluoride brings new research to light, including links between fluoride and harm to the brain, bones and endocrine system, and argues that the evidence that fluoridation reduces tooth decay is surprisingly weak."

Connett was a member of the St. Lawrence faculty for 23 years, retiring and being named to emeritus status in 2006. Director of the Fluoride Action Network, and executive director of its parent body, the American Environmental Health Studies Project, Connett has spoken and given more than 2,000 presentations in 49 states and 52 countries on the issue of waste management. He holds a bachelor's degree from the University of Cambridge and a Ph.D. in chemistry from Dartmouth College.

Beck is an emeritus professor medical biophysics at the University of Calgary; Micklem is an emeritus professor in the School of Biological Sciences at the University of Edinburgh.

Chelsea Green Publishing, in White River Junction, Vermont, has been a publishing leader for books on the politics and practice of sustainable living since its founding in 1985.